Take a look at this and tell me what you think.
http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2006/0905/1156791399066.html
2006-09-05 09:14:05 · 14 answers · asked by Melok 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Well, it makes me feel a bit discouraged, actually. If that's true, then any attempt at educating some of these religious folks will yield no results...
2006-09-05 09:23:56 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The conclusion is not valid from the evidence given. What has been demonstrated is that people irrationally and inately associate objects, places, etc with good and bad. This does not imply anything to do with supernatural beliefs.
The simpler explanation is that it's a shortcut to behavior that tends to promote self interest. If I fear a cave that a friend went into and never came out of, and that fear keeps me out of the cave, odds are it saved me from being eaten by a bear without requiring any knowledge on my part as to why the friend never returned.
But I suppose 'religion is genetic!' sells better.
2006-09-05 16:25:49 · answer #2 · answered by lenny 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As far as religion goes, I really believe god lives in the human brain, other things I have an open mind about. That we go for what seems to be the best explanation does NOT mean ist is'nt a valid explanation. I myself had a dream, rather trivial, but it turned out that the things I had seen were actually happening to a good friend of mine, at the same time I dreamed. Now explain that scientifically.
2006-09-05 16:27:09 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
I think it was Richard Carrier who also suggested that religious belief might be an unintended side effect of a hardwired tendency in humans to blindly accept what people in positions of authority tell you. For primitive humans, it would be a useful survival trait if you listened to what the elders told you instead of every generation having to learn the same things all over -- "Don't eat those berries, they're poisonous!" "Don't touch the fire, it'll burn you!" "Stay close to the cave after dark, there's wild things out there!"
However, that susceptibility leaves peoples' brains open to accepting all sorts of other, much less useful information as well....
2006-09-05 16:22:35 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Oh dear!!! you'll have a ton of people quoting their religious texts at you like it makes a difference.
i believe that religion is more that this.. it is a collective social luddite that looks after it's own interests and crushes any opposition. It suppresses the truth and seeks to control all it's members on multiple levels.
Bit like television and politics.... only older.
2006-09-05 17:01:16 · answer #5 · answered by Rich N 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Interesting indeed, answer the phone i am away to phone you!
For we a born to seek what we cannot find.
Some people say there is no evil in the world..
Some say there is no God.
The same applies to scientist's
Born to seek what we cannot understand.
Try asking a scientist to explain how the heavens work.
So we are all in the same boat.
2006-09-05 16:34:02 · answer #6 · answered by Ne Obliviscaris 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with that. People don't like the unknown; we're afraid of it. So our subconscious constructs explanations for things that our conscious mind cannot.
2006-09-05 16:18:37 · answer #7 · answered by drink_more_powerade 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I suspect it is true, but I question the existance of "supernatural" things. The things may exist, but I think that they are merely natural phenomena that we have yet to understand.
2006-09-05 16:21:22 · answer #8 · answered by ZombieTrix 2012 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Very interesting
2006-09-05 16:17:20 · answer #9 · answered by Blackacre 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Just read the article...all things are relative...we could say that we are also wired to not to believe in things...just the reverse...like me, I'm always suspicious of everything...I'm wired that way.
I be in God because of Facts...hard Facts!
2006-09-05 16:23:21 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋